A computer network is a group of interconnected nodes communicating with one another. The interconnected nodes are devices such as, computers, routers, bridges and switches. In a computer network in which all the nodes are local, for example, in the same building, a node can be managed by physically managing and controlling the node.
However, in computer networks in which there are non-local nodes, remote managing and controlling of nodes is necessary. To provide remote management and control of nodes, a network manager is provided in one or more nodes in the computer network. The network manager includes one or more network management applications. The nodes managed and controlled by the network management applications are called managed elements.
A managed element includes managed objects. A managed object is any object for which information is stored in the managed element. For example, the managed object may be text identifying the manufacturer of the managed element or a list of all nodes connected to the managed element. The managed element stores information for the managed object in a Managed Information Base (“MIB”), and makes it available to the network manager application.
The network management application may request information for a managed object stored in the managed element's MIB, using a network management protocol to communicate the request to the managed element. Standard network management protocols, such as the Simple Network Management Protocol (“SNMP”) described in the Internet Engineering Task Force (“IETF”) Request For Comments (“RFC”) standard Numbers 1901–1908 and 2271–2275, define a protocol for transferring information for managed objects between a network manager and a managed element.
Having retrieved the information for the managed object, the network management application may display the retrieved information on a monitor, record it for later analysis, or use it for automated management. The managed objects retrieved and displayed by a network management applications may include, for example, a list of all discovered devices in the computer network, the status of any discovered devices or the number of data packets forwarded by the managed element.
A request for retrieval of one or more managed objects from a managed element is generated by the network management application in the management station. The request for retrieval of one or more managed objects requires a message to be sent from the management station to the managed element. Each time a selected managed object is to be retrieved, a new message is required. Therefore, managing a managed object in the managed element may require continuously requesting information from the managed object. For example, to manage the performance of the computer network, the network management application may have to periodically request that the managed element return the value of a counter.
The number of requests for information from managed objects in the managed element directly affects the performance of the managed element. While the managed element is providing requested information from the managed object, data transfer through the managed element is reduced.
Therefore, what is needed is a method for prioritizing requests from computer network management applications.